Alfred Grünwald (1884–1951) was an Austrian author,

librettist A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major litu ...

, and

lyricist A lyricist is a songwriter who writes lyrics (the spoken words), as opposed to a composer, who writes the song's music which may include but not limited to the melody, harmony, arrangement and accompaniment. Royalties A lyricist's income ...

. Some of his better-known works were written in conjunction with the composers

Franz Lehár Franz Lehár ( ; hu, Lehár Ferenc ; 30 April 1870 – 24 October 1948) was an Austro-Hungarian composer. He is mainly known for his operettas, of which the most successful and best known is ''The Merry Widow'' (''Die lustige Witwe''). Life ...

Emmerich Kálmán Emmerich Kálmán ( hu, Kálmán Imre; 24 October 1882 – 30 October 1953) was a Hungarian composer of operettas and a prominent figure in the development of Viennese operetta in the 20th century. Among his most popular works are '' Die Csár ...

, Oscar Straus, Paul Abraham, and Robert Stolz.

Life and career

Grünwald was born on 16 February 1884 in Vienna. Following his schooling, he worked in a number of jobs, including as supernumerary, chorister, and for a theatrical agency, before turning to writing as theatre critic for a Vienna newspaper. From 1909, he wrote Kabarett sketches and librettos for operettas, often collaborating with

Julius Brammer Julius Brammer (9 March 1877 – 18 April 1943) was an Austrian librettist and lyricist. Some of his better-known works were written in conjunction with the composers Emmerich Kálmán, Oscar Straus, Leo Ascher, Edmund Eysler and Robert Stolz. ...

. As a Jew, he was arrested after the '' Anschluss'' of Austria in 1938. When he was temporarily released, the family fled to Paris, then in 1940 via Casablanca and Lisbon to New York City. During World War II he was employed for a time with the Office of War Information translating American songs for transmission by radio to Germany. A number of Grünwald's librettos were produced on Broadway. These included '' Countess Maritza'' (1926), ''

The Yankee Princess Die Bajadere is an operetta in 3 acts composed by Hungarian composer Emmerich Kálmán. The libretto was written by Julius Brammer and Alfred Grünwald. The work premiered in Vienna at the Carltheater on 23 December 1921. With the English-langua ...

'' (1922), ''

The Circus Princess ' (''The Circus Princess'') is an operetta in three acts by Hungarian composer Emmerich Kálmán to a German libretto by Julius Brammer and Alfred Grünwald. It premiered at the Theater an der Wien in Vienna on 26 March 1926 and went on to 344 ...

'' (1927), and ''

The Duchess of Chicago ''Die Herzogin von Chicago'' (''The Duchess of Chicago'') is an operetta in two acts, a prologue, and an epilogue. The music was composed by Hungarian composer Emmerich Kálmán with a libretto by Julius Brammer and Alfred Grünwald. It premiered ...

'' (1929). He also wrote a number of comedies, including ''Dancing Partner'' (1930), written in collaboration with Alexander Engel and produced on Broadway by David Belasco. He was a member of the

American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) () is an American not-for-profit performance-rights organization (PRO) that collectively licenses the public performance rights of its members' musical works to venues, broadca ...

. Grünwald died on 24 February 1951 in

Forest Hills, Queens Forest Hills is a mostly residential neighborhood in the central portion of the borough of Queens in New York City. It is adjacent to Corona to the north, Rego Park and Glendale to the west, Forest Park to the south, Kew Gardens to the southeast, ...

, New York City. His son Henry A. Grunwald was a journalist and diplomat (US ambassador to Austria from 1988 to 1990).Barbara Boisits (2003)
"Grünwald, Alfred"
'' Oesterreichisches Musiklexikon''

Works

* 1908 ''Die lustigen Weiber von Wien'', music by Robert Stolz * 1912 ''

Hoheit tanzt Walzer ''Hoheit tanzt Walzer'' (Her Highness Dances the Waltz) is an operetta in three acts by Leo Ascher to a libretto by Julius Brammer and Alfred Grünwald, with a plot loosely based on Oscar Straus' 1907 operetta ''Ein Walzertraum''. It premiered on ...

'', music by Leo Ascher * 1916 '' Die Rose von Stambul'', collaboration with

, music by Leo Fall * 1920 '' Der letzte Walzer'' (''The Last Waltz''), music by Oscar Straus * 1924 '' Gräfin Mariza'' (''Countess Maritza''), music by

* 1926 '' Die Zirkusprinzessin'' (''The Circus Princess''), music by Emmerich Kálmán * 1928 '' Die Herzogin von Chicago'' (''The Duchess of Chicago''), music by Emmerich Kálmán * 1930 ''Dancing Partner'' (play) * 1930 ''

Viktoria und ihr Husar ''Viktoria und ihr Husar'' (''Victoria and Her Hussar'' is an operetta in three acts and a prelude by Paul Abraham with a libretto by Alfred Grünwald and Fritz Löhner-Beda, based on a work by the Hungarian playwright Imre Földes. It premiere ...

'' (''Victoria and Her Hussar''), with Fritz Löhner-Beda, music by Paul Abraham * 1930 ''

Das Veilchen vom Montmartre ''Das Veilchen vom Montmartre'' (''The Violet of Montmartre'') is an operetta in 3 acts by Hungarian composer Emmerich Kálmán. The libretto was written by Julius Brammer and Alfred Grünwald. It premiered in Vienna at the on 21 March 1930 ...

'', music by Emmerich Kálmán * 1931 ''

Die Blume von Hawaii ''The Flower of Hawaii'' (German:''Die Blume von Hawaii'') is an operetta in three acts by Paul Abraham with a libretto by Alfred Grünwald, Fritz Löhner-Beda, and Imre Földes. It premiered on 24 July 1931 at the Neues Theater in Leipzig. The ...

'' (''The Flower of Hawaii''), with Fritz Löhner-Beda, music by Paul Abraham * 1932 ''

Ball im Savoy ''Ball im Savoy'' (''Ball at the Savoy'') is a jazz operetta in three acts and a prelude by Paul Abraham to a libretto by Alfred Grünwald and Fritz Löhner-Beda. It premiered on 23 December 1932 at the Großes Schauspielhaus, Berlin. However, H ...

'', music by Paul Abraham * 1932 ''Eine Frau, die weiß, was sie will'' (''A Woman Who Knows What She Wants''), music by Oscar Straus * 1937 ''Die polnische Hochzeit'', music by Joseph Beer * 1954 '' Arizona Lady'', music by Emmerich Kálmán

Filmography

*'' The Rose of Stamboul'', directed by

Felix Basch Felix Basch (1885–1944) was an American- Austrian actor, screenwriter and film director. He first acted in Vienna, and he was a producer and director for the German film production company U. F. A. Following the Nazi takeover of power in G ...

(Germany, 1919, silent) *'' Countess Maritza'', directed by Hans Steinhoff (Germany, 1925) *''

'', directed by

Adolf Gärtner Adolf Gärtner (1879–1958) was a German film director of the silent era.Cresswell & Dixon p.174 Selected filmography * '' The Night Talk'' (1917) * '' Sadja'' (1918) * '' The Lady in the Car'' (1919) * '' Between Two Worlds'' (1919) * ''Napoleo ...

(Germany, 1925) *'' Her Highness Dances the Waltz'', directed by Fritz Freisler (Austria, 1926) *'' The Laughing Husband'', directed by

Rudolf Walther-Fein Rudolf Walther-Fein (20 November 1875 – 1 May 1933) was an Austrian film director and producer of the Silent and early sound era. He directed the first full sound film to be released in Germany ''It's You I Have Loved'' in 1929.Kreimeier p.182 ...

and

Rudolf Dworsky Rudolf Dworsky (1882–1927) was a German film producer and film director, director of the Silent era. His production company was called Aafa-Film (Althoff-Ambos-Film), Berlin, the co-owner was the producer Gabriel Levy. Selected filmography Pro ...

(Germany, 1926) *'' The Last Waltz'', directed by Arthur Robison (Germany, 1927) *''

'', directed by Victor Janson (Germany, 1929) *''

The Merry Wives of Vienna ''The Merry Wives of Vienna'' (german: Die lustigen Weiber von Wien) is a 1931 German musical comedy film directed by Géza von Bolváry and starring Willi Forst, Lee Parry, and Paul Hörbiger. It was shot at the Tempelhof Studios in Berlin. The ...

'', directed by

Géza von Bolváry Géza von Bolváry (born Géza Gyula Mária Bolváry Zahn, german: Géza Maria von Bolváry-Zahn; 26 December 1897 – 10 August 1961) was a Hungarians, Hungarian actor, screenwriter, and film director, who worked principally in Germany and Aust ...

(Germany, 1931) *'' Just a Gigolo'', directed by Jack Conway (1931, based on ''Dancing Partners'') *'' Victoria and Her Hussar'', directed by

Richard Oswald Richard Oswald (5 November 1880 – 11 September 1963) was an Austrian film director, producer, screenwriter, and father of German-American film director Gerd Oswald. Early career Richard Oswald, born in Vienna as Richard W. Ornstein, began h ...

(Germany, 1931) *'' Gräfin Mariza'', directed by Richard Oswald (Germany, 1932) *''

The Flower of Hawaii ''The Flower of Hawaii'' (German:''Die Blume von Hawaii'') is an operetta in three acts by Paul Abraham with a libretto by Alfred Grünwald, Fritz Löhner-Beda, and Imre Földes. It premiered on 24 July 1931 at the Neues Theater in Leipzig. The ...

'', directed by Richard Oswald (Germany, 1933) *''

A Woman Who Knows What She Wants ''A Woman Who Knows What She Wants'' ( cs, Žena, která ví co chce) is a 1934 Czech musical comedy film directed by Václav Binovec and starring Markéta Krausová, , and Truda Grosslichtová. It is an adaptation of a 1932 stage musical of t ...

'', directed by

Václav Binovec Václav Binovec (12 September 1892 – 29 February 1976, in Prague) was a Czech film director, screenwriter, and occasional actor. He was often referred to under the pseudonyms of Willy Bronx or W. Bronx, and also V. Vabin. Binovec set up the fil ...

(Czechoslovakia, 1934) **''

'', directed by Victor Janson (Germany, 1934) *'' The Last Waltz'', directed by Georg Jacoby (Germany, 1934) *''

'', directed by Steve Sekely (Austria, 1935) *'' Her Highness Dances the Waltz'', directed by Max Neufeld (Austria, 1935, based on ''Hoheit tanzt Walzer'') **''Tanecek panny márinky'', directed by Max Neufeld (Czechoslovakia, 1935, based on ''Hoheit tanzt Walzer'') **''Valse éternelle'', directed by Max Neufeld (France, 1936, based on ''Hoheit tanzt Walzer'') *''Dschainah, das Mädchen aus dem Tanzhaus'', directed by (Austria, 1935) *'' The Last Waltz'', directed by Leo Mittler (France, 1936) **'' The Last Waltz'', directed by Leo Mittler (UK, 1936) *'' Ball at Savoy'', directed by Victor Hanbury (UK, 1936) *', directed by Johann von Vásáry (Hungary, 1937) **''

Roxy and the Wonderteam ''Roxy and the Wonderteam'' (German: ''Roxy und das Wunderteam'') is a 1938 Austrian musical sports film directed by Johann von Vásáry and starring Rosy Barsony, Fritz Imhoff and Hans Holt.Waller p.207 It is based on an operetta called ''Roxy ...

'', directed by Johann von Vásáry (Austria, 1938) *'' The Rose of Stamboul'', directed by Karl Anton (West Germany, 1953) *'' The Last Waltz'', directed by Arthur Maria Rabenalt (West Germany, 1953) *'' Victoria and Her Hussar'', directed by Rudolf Schündler (West Germany, 1954) *''

'', directed by Paul Martin (West Germany, 1955) *''

'', directed by Arthur Maria Rabenalt (West Germany, 1958) *'' Mister Iks'', directed by (Soviet Union, 1958, based on '' Die Zirkusprinzessin'') *'' Gräfin Mariza'', directed by Rudolf Schündler (West Germany, 1958) *''

'', directed by Svetlana Druzhinina (Soviet Union, 1982)

References

External links

*
Alfred Grunwald papers, 1907–2004
held by the Billy Rose Theatre Division, New York Public Library for the Performing Arts * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Grunwald, Alfred 1884 births 1951 deaths Writers from Vienna Austrian operetta librettists Austrian lyricists Jewish Austrian writers Jewish emigrants from Austria to the United States after the Anschluss Exilliteratur writers Austrian male dramatists and playwrights